Sand-drier



C. W. HALL.

SAND DRIER.

APPLICATION FILED IuNE I0, ISIS.

IIIII iUNiTnn sTATns PATENT crimen.

CHARLES W. HALL, 0F KEYSTONE, WEST VIRGINIA.

SAND-DRIER.

Application led June 10,

To all whom t may concern Be it known that I, CHARLES W. HALL, a

citizen of the United States, residing at Keystone, in the county of McDowell and State -of vWest Virginia, have invented certain new tion also has for its -obj ect the provision of a sand drier in which the several parts may bereadily lseparated in the event that repairs are necessary and any one part may be renewed without necessitating the provision of an -entirely new drier. These stated objects and other objects which will incidentally vappear in the course of the following description are attained in such a device as is illustrated inthe accompanyingA drawings and the invention resides in certain novel features which will be particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the annexed drawing- Figure 1 is an elevation, partly broken away, of a sand drier embodying my improvements Fig. 2 is Aa plan view of the same with the cap and the rings removed;

Fig. 3 is a central vertical section;

Fig. et is a detail perspective view of one of the rings looking at the under side of the same;

Fig. 5 lis ra similar view of the cap.

In carrying out my invention, I employ a base plate 1 to the under side of which feet 2 are removably attached. Upon the upper surface of the base plate 1 at the ,edge thereof is a rib or upstanding flan-ge `3 which is adapted to center the cylindrical shell or ring 4 which constitutes the body of the ash pit, said shell having an opening 5 in its lower edge through which the ashes may be removed and also to provide for the entrance of airv to support combustion and maintain a steady draft through the apparatus. The shell 4E is not secured to the base plate but vmerely rests at its lower edge on the plate and is held `against derangement by 'the rim 3 as `will be readily understood. In its upper edge, the shell 4 is provided with diametrically opposite notches 6 to receive Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 20, 1920.

1919. Serial N0. 303,061.

the trunnions 7 of the grate 8 whereby the said grate may be rocked when it is desired to discharge ashes from the lire-box into the ash pit. One of the trunnions may be eX- tended to a point outside the shell so as to receive a handle, and the grate will preferably be mounted so that it can rock only in one direction, as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 3. Normally the front edge of the grate will be supported by a lug or projection 9 on the inner surface of the front wall -of the shell 4, as shown in Fig. 3, and consequently the upsetting of the grate when fuel is being inserted will be avoided. Resting on the upper edge of the shell 4 and supported by the same is an upper shell or ring 10 which constitutes the nre-box and is provided with a fuel chute 11 having its outer end normally closed by a door 12 and through which the fuel may be readily inserted into the lire-box. The lower edge of the shell 10 is offset, as shown at 13, to provide a bead or rim which is adapted to engage around the upper edge of the lower shell 4 and thereby maintain the shells in concentric relation and the upper surface of the said bead provides a support for an annulus 14; provided with openings 15 therethrough and having an upstanding rim 16 at its outer edge. Resting at its lower end upon the said annulus and retained in position thereon by the said rim is a hopper 17 which is preferably of sheet metal and flares upwardly from the said annulus, as clearly shown. The sand to be dried is fed into the hopper and will gravitate to the lower end thereof around the fire-box or shell 10. lllhen the sand is wet it will tend to bank within the hopper and, consequently, will not pass through the openings 16 but as the moisture is withdrawn and the sand becomes dry the particles willtend to separate and will drop through the said openings and may be caught in any convenient receptacle or `permitted to pile up on the ground. as will be readily understood. Above the firebox and supported thereon is a plurality of vertical series of rings or bafHes which are spaced apart to provide passages for moist air extracted from the sand and also to support the sand and prevent the same working into the fire-box. These rings may be provided in any desired number according to the size of the drier and are all of the same construction so that a description of one will suiice. Each ring comprises an annulus which is concave on its under side in cross section, as shown at 18, the opening at the lower edge of the ring being greater in diameter than the fire-box or shell 10 and greater than the opening at the upper edge of the ring. Around the inner circumference of the ring on the upper side thereof is a rim 19 and on the inner concave surface of the ring are spaced lugs 2O each of which is provided with a notch 21 adapted to engage the upper edge of the shell 10 or of a subjacent ring. By referring to Fig. 3, it will be noted that the lugs 20 onthe lowermost ring engage the upper edge of the fireboX and thereby serve to properly center the ring on the iire-boX and the shape of the ring provides a passage between the lower surface thereof and the upper edge of the fire-box for the escape oi' moisture from the surrounding body of sand. The superimposed ring has its lugs engaged on the rim 19 oi" the first ring so that a second space for the escape of moist air is provided,this

arrangement being repeated to the full` height of the drier or to such lesser height as may be deemed desirable. The rings are not secured together but each ring rests loosely upon the subjacent ring or the lireboX, as the case may be, so that if any one ring should be broken or become so warped through long continued use as to be no longer eiiicient, the damaged ring may be removed and a new ring substituted therefor without requiring the provision of an entire new heater. Upon the uppermost ring I place a cap 22 which is conoidal in form and is provided at its lower end with an internal angular groove 23 adapted to engage the rim 19 of the uppermost ring whereby the cap will be properly centered and supported. At the upper smaller end of the cap is an outlet 24- and the wall of the cap around the said outlet may be eX- tended, as indicated at 25 so as to constitute a short chimney which will prevent lateral spreading' of the smoke or other escaping currents and will direct the same upward so as to maintain the proper ydraft through the apparatus. It will be readily noted that the external diameter of the several rings is greater than the diameter of the base of the cap or the diameter of the tire-box so that the sand as it gravitates will be deflected by the rings toward the side of the hopper and will be prevented from choking the passages between the rings and the external surfaces of the rings are convex and inclined downwardly so that the sand cannot lodge thereon.

In the use of this drier, the sand is fed into the hopper and the fire is kindled within the shell or .fire-box 10. The heat from the fire will rise through the several rings and the cap 22 inasmuch as they present an uninterrupted vertical passage for the same and the sand surrounding these parts will cut off the lateral escape of the heat. The parts are all of metal so that they will become heated through exposure to the ire and will. then radiate heat through the body of sand and the draft through the heater `will draw air through-the body of sand into the interior of the heater to be carried out through the outlet 24 with the smoke and other products of combustion. Inasmuch as the hopper converges toward the fire-box the body of sand around the hre-box will never be very great, and, consequently, it will become thoroughly dried through contact with the tire-box and exposure to the heat radiated therefrom, and as a result there will be a steady :line stream of dry sand escaping through the openings 15. Inasmuch as there are very few parts and these parts are of simple construction, the drier may be produced at a very low cost and as the parts are not secured together but are merely placed one upon another, the assembling of the device does not require a great amount of skilled labor and may be accomplished in a very short time. Should any one part be broken it may be replaced at a low cost and without requiring the renewal of any other part. Moreover, if the damaged part is one of the rings the use of the device may proceed with a fewer number of rings until a new ring may be obtained.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. A sand drier comprising a ire-boX, an annulus supported externally upon the lireboX and provided with openings therethrough, a hopper resting-on said annulus and rising therefrom above the tire-box, the openings in the annulus being at the inner side of the wall of the hopper, a plurality oi vertically spaced rings disposed within the hopper above the fire-box, and a cap supported by the uppermost ring.

2. In a sand drier, the combination of a lire-box, a hopper surrounding the lire-box, and a plurality of rings disposed in vertically spaced concentric relation above the fire-box, each of said rings having an upstanding rim on its upper side and provided on its under side with spaced lugs adapted to engage the upper edge of the tire-box or therim of a subjacent ring.

3. In a sand drier, the combination of a shell constituting an ash pit, a second shell constituting a fire-box and provided with an annular offset at its lower edge to engage over the upper edge of the first-mentioned shell, an annulus surrounding the second shell and resting on said off-set, a hopper resting at its lower end on said annulus and supported thereby, and a plurality of vertically spaced rings disposed above the upper means on the several rings whereby they will shell and within the hopper, said rings bebe supported in vertically spaced relation, ing provided with centering means whereby and a conoidal cap constructed to engage 10 they may be supported in superposed relathe upper side of the uppermost ring and 5 tion. having an outlet at its apex.

4. ln a sand drier, the combination of a In testimony whereof I aiiix m signature. fire-box, a plurality of superposed rings, CHARLES W. HAL [1.. s] 

